Hollygrove park gets the KaBOOM! treatment

A once-neglected Hollygrove park has a bright new playground, thanks to neighborhood groups, a national nonprofit and more than 200 volunteers.

View full sizePhotos by Chris Granger, The Times-PicayuneVolunteers carry the new Conrad Playground sign to its final resting spot as they and many others repair and remodel the park on Hamilton Street in New Orleans.

For five years, Kevin Brown, executive director of Trinity Christian Community, has been looking for a partner to help transform Conrad Park, 3400 Hamilton St.

He found one in the national nonprofit KaBOOM!, along with several local agencies.

“The real goal is not just to rebuild a playground but to rebuild a neighborhood,” said Brown.

Assistance also came from the DJR Foundation, the Hollygrove Farm and Market, the Carrollton Hollygrove Community Development Corporation, Saints players and the New Orleans Recreation Development Commission.

The end result was a playground inspired by the drawings of neighborhood children and assembled by volunteers, from as close as across the street and as far away as Pennsylvania.

It’s a welcome change, neighborhood volunteers said.

Earl Williams, finance manager forTrinity Christian Community, has seen the park deteriorate dramatically in the 56 years that he has lived across the street.

“When I was growing up it was a really nice park,” Willliams said. “Then in the ’80s New Orleans had a real spike in murders, and drug dealers and addicts took over the park.”

View full sizeAndrew Tuozzolo, right, joins dozens of other volunteers in sprucing up and remodeling Conrad Playground. Tuozzolo sweeps the newly painted sidewalk leading to a new play set, top.

Mary Shaw, who runs an in-house day-care center in the neighborhood, is looking forward to getting more use out of the play space.

“I bring the kids from my day care out here,” she said. “It wasn’t what it needed to be, but now we are going to come here more. All the kids love to play ball, and so they are going to enjoy playing right here on the court.”

More than 40 children from the community between 7 and 17 participated in KaBOOM!’s design day, where they were asked to draw their dream playground.

Neighbor Alexis LeBant, 16, worked with younger children on their designs and assisted with painting on Sunday.

“I helped the kids out because I was determined to see a change in our neighborhood. So it’s good to see it happening,” said Alexis.

KaBOOM! took the drawings and ideas from the design day to its playground manufacturer, which in turn created three designs from which the Hollygrove community chose.

After two months of planning, 200-plus volunteers came together to assemble the green and orange playground, build picnic tables and benches, paint bright signs and railings, repaint the basketball court markings and lay down a pathway of stepping stones painted by neighborhood children.

Trinity Christian Community has arranged for a park supervisor to be hired, and is working with crime consultants to keep the space safe. A basketball team started last year, a booster club is now operational, the Hollygrove Seniors are utilizing the facilities and the church will be using the facilities for their summer youth programs.

“We envision the park being something for all ages,” Brown said. “We have frequent community outreach events where we have barbecues. We are bringing more people into the community.”

Amy Gainsburgh-Haspel of the DJR Foundation sees the renovation as a new beginning.

“It doesn’t have to end with the playground,” she said. “Let the community get together, let the community be part in planning it, maintaining it and growing it.”

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Margaret Quilter is a contributing writer. She can be reached at margaretquilter@gmail.com.